


Birthday Surprise

by dark_willow



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Arthur Finds Out, Arthurian, Canon Era, Implied Sexual Content, Implied Slash, Implied/Referenced Incest, M/M, Magic Revealed, Pining Merlin, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-18
Updated: 2014-03-18
Packaged: 2018-01-16 04:03:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1331203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dark_willow/pseuds/dark_willow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Short fic - Merlin hurries to get ready for Arthur's birthday celebration, while trying to hide his feelings for the young prince.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Birthday Surprise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [quakingaspen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/quakingaspen/gifts).



Merlin scurried down the hallway, clutching the bouquet of flowers close to his chest. He had to be careful though, he didn’t want to squish them - the flowers were for Arthur, after all. Well, for Arthur’s birthday feast, at least. But Merlin could still pretend that he was going to hand-deliver them to the prince. 

Everything had to be perfect for Arthur’s birthday feast. Uther had the whole castle teeming with activity, and the guests were already beginning to stream in. As Merlin rushed past a window, he could see a large group of colorful tents being set up out on the grounds. There would be the feast, the ceremonial re-establishing of treaties with some of the neighboring kingdoms, and then the tournament the following morning. Of course there would be a tournament, Merlin sighed. While he did love seeing Arthur compete (and helping him undress afterwards), the tournaments were always a near-disaster. Truth be told, Merlin had used magic to assist Arthur in four of the last six tournaments. Someone always seemed to have it in for the young prince. 

Merlin rushed in to the Great Hall, and carefully deposited the bouquet into a large vase on the banquet table. As he turned around, he spotted Gwen coming out of the kitchens.

“Hey Gwen, have you seen Morgana recently?”

Gwen turned to him with a bemused expression. “She’s been in her room all day and wouldn’t let anyone else in… do you know what’s up?”

Merlin started to blush, and stammered “well, she’s helping me with… er… a present for Arthur.”

Gwen smiled knowingly; she knew about Merlin’s rather unorthodox feelings for his master. “Well, it better be good! And hopefully it won’t take too much longer, I need to start dressing her for the feast tonight!”

* * *

An exhausted-looking Morgana ushered Merlin into her room, and quickly closed the door behind him. As she strode over to her desk, Merlin eyed her with a hint of jealousy. Even with his predilection for the princely-type, he couldn’t deny that she was hauntingly beautiful. Arthur was quite aware too - Merlin had caught him gazing upon her quite a few times. And there had been whispers that - but no. It couldn’t be. Merlin tightened his fists, trying to fight the mixture of sickness and jealousy rising in his stomach. 

Morgana returned, carrying a large scabbard embroidered with sparkling gold thread. Merlin gasped as he examined the intricate magical symbols woven into the scabbard. 

“… and this will… protect him?”

Morgana smirked.

“It will keep him from dying in battle, that’s for sure. I have to admit, it was a clever idea. I’m sure the prince will appreciate it, even if he doesn’t know its true powers.” Morgana wheeled around, and walked back to her bed. “Hopefully the prince will like *my* present as well.”

Merlin gulped - a sudden image of body paint and antlers flashed in his mind. He could never explain it, he always got these weird feelings around Morgana. Sometimes he wondered if she too had magic… But surely not. As the king’s ward, she was under nearly constant supervision. Someone would have noticed something by now. But still… she did have a mysterious air about her. Merlin could never tell quite what she was up to. 

* * * 

Pushing the door open to Gaius’s chambers, Merlin let out a sigh of relief. He had worried that he would run in to Arthur on the way back across the castle, and that the young prince would see his present. Normally, Merlin would go out of his way to “accidentally” bump into Arthur throughout the day as he did his chores - but today required secrecy. Of course, Merlin was no stranger to sneaking around the castle. He couldn’t quite understand how he hadn’t been caught yet… he would have to find a way to subtly hint to Arthur that the night guards were often far from vigilant. 

Merlin slid the scabbard on to the largest table in the room, and rushed over to the desk in search of a quill and ink. He was still trying to figure out exactly what sort of note to write - deep inside, he longed for this birthday note to turn in to a love letter, a letter so beautifully written that Arthur would have no choice but to return his feelings. Of course, the idea was ridiculous. He couldn’t write something like that. He started scribbling down some words on a scrap piece of parchment, before crossing them out again with a groan. He didn’t know why he was putting this much effort into the note, Arthur wasn’t likely to give it more than a passing glance. Merlin sighed, thinking of the note Arthur had given him on his birthday - “my armor needs to be cleaned, and someone needs to muck out the stalls. happy birthday.” Admittedly, it had just been one of the normal lists of instructions the prince would leave on his desk for Merlin, but the birthday greetings were still an appreciated surprise. The well-worn note was still tucked under Merlin’s pillow.

 

* * *

Merlin lost track of time while working on the note - before he knew it, the afternoon bell started to ring. Merlin cursed, shoved aside the pile of half-finished love notes, and bolted out the door. There were still so many chores to do before tonight!

He rushed into the prince’s chamber, and let out a groan at the pile of dirty clothes on the floor. The bed was also a mess, there was still old food sitting out on the table, and the floors looked like they hadn’t been swept in ages. Merlin started to panic - there was no way he could get this all done before the feast tonight! 

After poking his head out and checking the hallway, Merlin pulled the door closed. He knew that Gaius would chastise him for what he was about to do, but there was no other choice. Merlin still had chores to do in the armory, and then had to help Arthur dress for the feast. Glancing around the room, Merlin uttered a series of words under his breath. His eyes flashed gold, and a wave of energy rushed through him. The sheets started to straighten themselves, the clothes floated up in the air and moved over to the washing tub, and a broom started dancing across the floor. With a sly grin, Merlin slipped out of the room and dashed for the armory.

* * * 

Wiping his brow, Merlin leaned back and glanced at the pile of armor still in front of him. He had finished cleaning and shining the biggest pieces, and now only had the helmet to deal with. Unfortunately, magic was out of the question - other knights kept rushing in and out of the armory, preparing for the tournament the next morning. Gwaine had stopped by to playfully tease him, and the two had chatted for a few minutes. Gwaine was one of Merlin’s favorite knights, and the conversation had been a welcome relief from the hard work of preparing Arthur’s armor. Unfortunately, Gwaine couldn’t stay long - he soon hurried off, muttering something about needing to find Percival. Merlin smiled, he had a sneaking suspicion that the two shared something more than friendship. It made him feel a little better, as if his feelings for Arthur weren’t quite so unnatural. Besides, it wasn’t completely unheard of, for two knights to turn to each other for physical comfort, especially when they were out on a long quest and hadn’t felt a women’s touch in several fortnights. Merlin could just picture it - two knights, huddled together around the fire, one knight leaning his head on the other’s shoulder… 

The armory door swung open, jolting Merlin from his fantasy. He pulled the helmet in front of him, trying to hide the growing bulge in his trousers. Arthur strode through the door, staring down at Merlin with an unreadable expression. 

“I was looking for you earlier, and I er… I found something…” Arthur grunted, sounding both confused and angry. 

A jolt of fear ran through Merlin. The magic! Arthur must have come back from practice earlier than Merlin anticipated, and seen some of the cleaning spells going on his chambers! 

Panicked, Merlin stammered “I… er… I can explain…”.

Arthur strode towards him. “You don’t have to. I know what’s going on.”

Merlin scooted back against the wall, heart racing. “I… I’m sorry! I would have told you sooner! I just… I knew you would be upset and I didn’t know what the right moment would be and… well… not all magic is bad!”

Arthur stopped short. “What?!”

Merlin gulped. “I mean, yes, magic can certainly be used for evil, but my magic isn’t like that! It can be used for good too! Like, I’ve used it to protect you tons of times, and to help fight off monsters!” Merlin was shaking… he had always known that this day would come, but it still terrified him. He stared up at Arthur, waiting for a response.

“You… have magic?” 

“… wasn’t that that you were talking about? The spells in your chambers?”

Arthur cocked his head. “No? I was talking about the scabbard and the… er… notes…”

Merlin’s face instantly flushed the deep crimson of the young prince’s tunic. “I… er…” he mumbled to the ground, his voice dying in his throat.

“As for the magic… well… we’ll deal with that soon enough,” muttered Arthur. “In the meantime… do you still have any oil left over from polishing?”

Merlin looked up, confused. “Er, yeah, there’s still some here…”

“Good” grunted Arthur, locking the door behind him. “Now, as for those notes… “ he mused, unfastening his breeches. 

* * *


End file.
